The-Thunderbolt-Kid said:
.... but we are also lacking a tough defensive midfielder who can win the ball and give us steel in midfield. Our strikers are not scoring goals partly because of the lack of creativity in midfieldbut mostly because they are all playing too far away from the goal and are not making runs behind the defence.
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The problem is we don't have anyone in our squad who is suited to making runs behind the defence and scoring goals, Rooney has very good movement and can make the runs but he lacks composure and is a poor finisher so the further away he is from the goal the better in IMHO. Rooney is ideal behind the main striker because his passing and vision is excellent and he can create goals, he also has excellent shooting ability from distance so that position is ideal for Rooney as long as he is not overweight and off the pace as he is far too often these days. Berbatov is the one most suited to leading the line for us this season so Sir Alex needs to tell him to play like a target man and stop coming deep, that may not be what he's best at but he needs do that that for the sake of the team.
I personally don't think we would have won the trophies last season had it not been for the amazing season that Ronaldo had, we relied on him heavily for our goals last season and now that his form has dipped we are seeing that our recognised strikers don't contribute enough individually. I think we need to let Tevez leave and spend the money on a proper centre forward like Benzema, then Berbatov can drop deep and play the way he likes to and Rooney can warm the bench until he decides to start working and maintaining fitness so that he is not overweight and slow all the time.
Agree with that post and i've highlighted that point myself, that we don't have drive from midfield.
Carrick & Co hangback and spray passes, no body drives at the opposition with the ball and tries to open them up and joins the strikers.
The lack of creativity means Berba drops deep to help out, but that leave either Rooney or Tevez a lone upfront.
We had the same weakness last season, but Ronaldo's goals sort of helped to mask that difference. This season that weakness is being exposed though.
Harreaves might not be that creative, but he does run with the ball and would bring more drive through the centre. With him being injured and Scholes, as well as Giggs approaching the end of their playing careers, I would welcome a player like Palacios to the team.
I also think the upcoming youngsters like Gibson & Possebon should be drilled on this in training. It should become part of their game, while they are still young and adaptable.
If you think of it, Scholes was a complete midfielder. Apart form his tackling, he was superb in every other aspect. His range of passing is still great , ut he can also carry the ball forward, play one-two's, draw opposing defenders towards him, which opens up space for others.
At the moment, we're not doing that.
